Visitors traveling five miles south of Olean, N.Y., could will find themselves immersed in the largest display of quartz conglomerate in the world at the historic Rock City Park.
Starting Oct. 11, Rock City Park will hold its seventh Gem-Mineral-Fossil show which will feature vendors and geode specialists, in addition to the current attractions at the park.
Show hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and the festivities continue through Columbus Day.
Guests to Rock City Park during the Gem Show will have the opportunity to view and purchase a wide variety of gemstone jewelry and rough mineral and rock specimens, fossils, crystals, beads and mineral-related crafts of all sorts from a variety of show vendors.
Other attractions include a fluorescent rock room, which showcases minerals that glow under a blacklight, a museum, gift shop and hiking trail.
The original mile-long trail dating over 100 years is lined with monolithic rock and navigational markings. Upon admission, guests will receive a trail guide detailing where to go and what to see along their walk.
To date, over 10 geode vendors are signed up. These vendors will display geodes ranging from one inch to eight inches, and vendors are welcome to sign up until the day of the event.
Dale Smith, park ranger, said, “Our prices are competitive. Everything is very well-priced and we have an enormous variety.”
This year, presenter Tom Ennis of the Philadelphia area will half geodes for guests. How this works is a guest purchases a rock, and then Ennis halves their specimen before an audience.
Each geode is an example of the natural process of chemical precipitation. The geodes, once cracked open, may show patterns that reveal points of fluid entry and also various colors ranging from clear quartz crystal, purple amethyst and perhaps celestite.
The land around Rock City is a prehistoric ocean floor with formations that can be traced back 350 million years. The ocean floor bed rocks were exposed after years of erosion.
In New York and Pennsylvania, there are several similar large rock formations unique to the Appalachian Mountains, such as Thunder Rocks, Devil’s Den and Little Rock City.
The park was in its prime from 1895-1925 when guests enjoyed its amusement park with a merry-go-round, photo houses, a dance house and a shooting gallery.
John Philip Sousa played one time in the park’s dance pavilion, which burned down in 1937, and currently, owners Cindy and Dale Smith have one of the original carved horses from the merry-go-round.
When Rock City Park opened in 1890, visitors arrived by trolley and had the option to stay at the Bon Air Hotel.
Part of the trolley rails remain near the old loading station in the woods, and as visitors come up the hill from Bradford and Olean, the trolley grade can be seen.
The Bon Air Hotel was a three-story, ornate building that was torn down in 1927. The hotel roomed prominent people of the time such as John L. Sullivan, a heavyweight champion of gloved boxing, and famous actors and actresses.
Admission to Gem Show is $5 per person and includes the Gem Show, hiking trail, gift shop and museum.
There is free parking for all those attending the park and senior and group discounts are available at the door.
For vendor registration please contact Theresa Smith at rockcitypark@hotmail.com or call (716) 560-8562.
